The Planet's Chosen
by Orem-Flare
Summary: 18 years after the defeat of Sephiroth, he returns!
1. Prologue

Prologue  
  
My…child…  
  
Awaken my child…  
  
Repent…for your sins…  
  
Protect those whom you have caused great pain to…  
  
He opened his eyes abruptly, he found himself floating in a small bubble of blue glowing liquid, feathers floated within the tank as well. Sticking out a finger, he poked the membrane of the bubble, which instantly dumped him onto the hard, cold rock floor.  
  
"Where…am I?" He inquired to himself, walking around the large cavern naked and dripping with the still-glowing liquid.  
  
He finds a small pool of water in the corner of the cave; he drinks deeply and washes the green ooze from his body  
  
Over here…a voice called from the other side of the room, rather, whispered in his mind  
  
The tall, sinewy man walked over to the place the voice had called him to. In the shadows, he discovered a pair of black pants, a long leather coat a pair of black army boots, and a horrendously long sword.  
  
This…is your destiny Sephiroth…make a new image for yourself with your old tools of destruction.  
  
Not knowing where the voice originated, but trusting it nonetheless, he donned the clothing, the pants being loose and baggy, and sheathed the sword in a sheath attached to the coat.  
  
He set out from the cave, to do what the voice commanded of him. 


	2. Chapter 1

1 The Planet's Chosen  
  
Chapter 1  
  
"Come on Arieth, time to wake up. We're going to the Golden Saucer today. If you don't get up now, your father and I will go by ourselves" Tifa called from the kitchen, making breakfast for the small family.  
  
"I'm up, I'm up. I'm trying to figure out what to wear!" A girls voice called from up stairs.  
  
"Why not that nice outfit that Barret sent you for your 17th birthday?" Cloud called from the table, where he was chopping veggies for breakfast.  
  
"…Are you kidding? It's pretty, but it's the GOLDEN SAUCER, I want to look my best," Arieth called as she came down the stairs, wearing a pair of short denim shorts and a blue tank top that hung loose under her breasts.  
  
After he had finished chopping up the vegetables, Cloud had taken to a glass of orange juice. When he saw what his daughter was wearing, he quickly released the liquid that he had in his mouth, spraying it over the table, "You seriously planning on wearing that are you? You're dressing like your mom used to!!"  
  
Cloud had to quickly duck as a hard apple was thrown at him from his lovely wife. The comment did have the desired effect he wanted, Arieth quickly dashed up the stairs to put something else on.  
  
"Very funny, Hun," Tifa snorted from her position by the stove.  
  
"It worked, didn't it" He replied quickly as not to further enrage his powerful partner.  
  
Arieth came back down the stairs, now clad in a black t-shirt and some loose-fitting pants.  
  
"Much better," Cloud commented as he wiped up his orange juice.  
  
"Glad you like it," She replied as she fixed a pink ribbon into her long, golden hair. The ribbon had been given to her as a present from Red XIII on her sixteenth birthday. Her parents had told her that it looked almost exactly like the one that the original Arieth had worn.  
  
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After breakfast, the family walked out to a small chocobo stable outside of their home, inside were two black chocobos and one gold.  
  
They saddled their mounts, then climbed on for the long trek to the Golden Saucer. Tifa and Cloud had both taken the blacks while Arieth mounted her pet, Shiva.  
  
They took off for the theme park, which was only a day's ride from their home on the outskirts of Nibleheim. Arieth tingled with excitement as this being her first time there and not knowing what to expect. She took the lead of the little group, having the faster chocobo, but she was careful as to not get to far ahead for the monsters in this area were quite fast, and the birds, even her gold, might not escape them.  
  
Near noon, the saucer could be seen in the distance, but very vaguely.  
  
" Honey, we're going to stop for lunch here," Tifa called from behind and to the right of Arieth.  
  
"All right mom," the girl responded as she hopped off her bird and led it to some long grass to graze.  
  
When Arieth arrived to where her parents were, they were putting out a small blanket for them to eat on. The girl helped them set up and, after the repast, she laid back in the grass and looked up into the sky.  
  
Her dark brown eyes, took in many shapes, hedgehog pies, behemoths, and an assortment of other monsters. Abruptly, the chocobos warked in panic as a large, green cactuar appeared out of the ground.  
  
Arieth had been waiting for a chance like this. She began to glow as she summoned her limit break. Her parents, who were about to attack the odd- looking creature, stepped back to see what their daughter was about to release.  
  
"CHERRY BLOOM!" the girl yelled as she pulled out a pair of katal from their sheaths on her thighs. She lunged into the air and came down as her weapons shot pink energy waves into the cactuar, when she landed on it, she slid down it's front, dragging her katal through it's hide.  
  
When she jumped back, the cactuar split into three, perfectly sliced pieces, and then dissolved in a flash of red light.  
  
After her victory dance, which included some jumping around and spinning her katal, she turned to her astonished parents who had a dumbfounded look on their faces.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------- ---  
  
"Finally, we're here," Arieth exclaimed with an exasperated look she earned from a bumpy ride on the lift from North Corel, "What are we gonna do first?"  
  
"We are going to check into the inn and get some sleep," Tifa called from behind her, patting a motion sick Cloud on the back, "See, I told you not to read on the lift"  
  
"Don't rub it in"  
  
Arieth interrupted the little moment with her complaining, "Why can't we go on some rides?"  
  
"Because…cough…it's almost midnight…hack…none of the rides are open," a Recovering Cloud exclaimed  
  
"…Oh"  
  
At that moment, a faint tingling entered Clouds head. It was familiar, but he shrugged it off as a side affect of the potion Tifa had give him.  
  
"Come on, let's get to the inn, alright?" Tifa commanded as the miserable duo followed her to the Chute Room, the main way of transportation in Golden Saucer.  
  
---------------------------------------------------------------- ---  
  
"…I can't believe it's you!!" the scruffy little cat atop a mog exclaimed, heartily shaking Cloud's hand.  
  
"It's good to see you to Cait-Sith. But can we talk in the morning, we're tired at the moment," A slightly green Cloud exclaimed  
  
"Oh sure, sure. You look beat, with those crows feet by your eyes "  
  
At that point Arieth burst out laughing. Cloud on the other hand, got very indignant at the remark.  
  
"Actually Cait, he's always like that, now, remember, we age," Tifa reminded the rather forgetful android.  
  
"Riiiiiiiiiight, sorry about that, Cloud," Cait apologized to him, "Anyway…"  
  
"Cait-Sith, I'm really tired, we'll talk in the morning," Cloud said to the dopey looking robot in front of him, reaching for his sword, "Good night"  
  
"G'night," the android said as he turned and ran from his sword-wielding 'friend', "Nice people, a bit edgy, though"  
  
"He's funny," Arieth stated as the headed for the haunted house themed in.  
  
"Yeah, during the first hundred words that escape his mouth," Tifa stated.  
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
After checking in for the night. The Couple and their daughter tucked in for the night. They turned off the lights and quickly fell asleep.  
  
Across the hall, the occupant of that room was having a bit more trouble getting to sleep; he was too interested in the room he was in. The "haunted" room was quite amusing. He searched every nook and cranny. When satisfied, he leapt into the soft, comfortable bed after taking off his cloak and boots. He took one more look around the room, and at his Masamunè. Then running a hand through his short, spiky, black hair, to make sure he had gotten all the little clippings out, he turned off the light and fell asleep, listening to the planet sing. 


	3. Chapter 2

1 The Planet's Chosen  
  
1.1 Chapter 2  
  
It's been eighteen year…eighteen years since we defeated Sephiroth.  
  
Cloud found himself in the Nibelheim of old. The fires of Sephiroth's rage flowing through the small town, the screams of people burning alive filling the air, and the stench of burning meat filling the air.  
  
The flames before him rose up, forming a human shape with glowing green eyes. The entity raised a sword, which was solid despite it's fiery holder. It plunged it sword down at him, threatening to run him through until…  
  
------------------------------------------------  
  
Cloud woke up in a cold sweat, Tifa still sleeping soundly next to him and Arieth on the other bed. He wiped the beads of sweat from his face, pulled aside the covers, and went to the bathroom.  
  
While standing before the can, Cloud noticed the same faint buzzing he had felt last night, "That's odd, that medicine should have worn off by now"  
  
When he came out of the bathroom, Tifa was up and trying to get Arieth to do the same.  
  
"Come on, Honey, time to get cracking on those rides you were to eager to attend last night," Tifa shook the girl lightly, sighing lightly, she moved to her last resort, "There's lots of cute boys out there."  
  
Arieth was up like a flash, quickly running to a small dressing room to get out of her pj's and into something a little more form fitting.  
  
She came out dressed in a pair of orange cover-alls and a rainbow shirt, her hair already in her ribbon, and her katal hidden in the deep pockets, sheathed  
  
"Mom, can I borrow a few thousand gil?" She asked hopefully, she had spent all of her money on the outfit she was wearing.  
  
"I guess you can," Tifa exasperated as she fished into a small wallet she carried in her shorts, Tifa hadn't worn her old outfit since she became pregnant, now she stuck to long pants and sweat shirts in the winter and long shorts and t-shirts in the summer.  
  
She tosses the girl a few thousand-gil pieces.  
  
"Thanks, Mom," Arieth called over her shoulder as she bolted out of the room.  
  
"That girl," Cloud sighed as he pulled on a blue, turtleneck tank top, "She's going to financially break us, you know."  
  
"She's young, Cloud, let her enjoy it," Tifa explained, walking out of the room, "See you in a few hours, Babe"  
  
"Bye," Cloud replied, "Where are you going, anyway?"  
  
"To the chocobo track," she answered, "I'm going to do some gambling"  
  
"Alright, I'm going to probably head up to the Battle Arena in a while"  
  
"Ok, see ya"  
  
"Kay"  
  
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Arieth was running over to the arcade, where she hoped she could spot out a few a few cuties, when she heard some girls talking.  
  
"Have you seen that guy at the Battle Arena? He's amazing," one of the girls, said to her friends.  
  
"Not only that, he's a real babe. I'd love to get closer to him," a second one stated, making kissy-face with the air.  
  
"Yeah," the other two replied dreamily.  
  
Not one to miss a chance like this, Arieth quickly turned and headed for the Battle Arena tube.  
  
--------------------------------------------------------  
  
"Wow!! Look at him go!!"  
  
"Yeah, I got my money on him going all the way!"  
  
"Are you kidding? He's good, but he's not going to beat the Dark Dragon"  
  
"Where'd the boss get that thing, anyway?"  
  
"He found it up North somewhere"  
  
The conversations of the people around the windows of the Battle Arena got Arieth very anxious to see the fighter in there.  
  
"Let me through, please," she asked a tall, bearded man in a sumo wrestling uniform.  
  
"Anything for such a pretty little lady," the kind man responded, ordering a few workers to make room for her.  
  
After thanking the man, she looked into the window  
  
"Wow"  
  
Inside the large arena stood a tall, dark-haired boy who appeared to be about her age. He was cutting through the monsters that came before him with a long sword the likes of which Arieth had never seen. He held it high, along his cheek when he was waiting for the next wave of monsters to advance.  
  
"Next fight!!! Theeeeeeeeee DARK DRAGON!!!" the announcer shouted as a large black dragon shambled out of the gate.  
  
The crowd was making bets, snickering at how bad he was going to be beat, and keeping their eyes glued to the window.  
  
From the microphone strapped to his cloak, the powerful boy was heard to actually be taunting the monster, "Bring it on you weak excuse for a dragon. You don't have a chance against me."  
  
The crowd roared with laughter at the proposal that the boy would actually beat the prize monster of Dio, the owner of the Golden Saucer.  
  
Their laughter stopped as the battle began.  
  
The boy waited patiently for the dragon to make its move. The move came in the form of a mighty breath attack, filling the room with a blazing inferno.  
  
"YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!" the boy's yell came out of the speakers.  
  
Arieth gasped in horror, then in surprise as the boy thrust out a hand, deflecting the fire out from around him with a powerful Freeze spell. He didn't appear to be burned at all, not even his cloak was singed.  
  
The crowd roared in disappointment that the boy had passes the time marker for many of the bets.  
  
With another loud yell, the boy lunged at the beast, jumped on its head, and severed the body part he was standing on in one smooth swipe. The head fell to the ground, carrying him down with it.  
  
"The…CHALLENGER WINS!!!" the announcer yelled in disbelief.  
  
The boy walked out of the chamber coolly, collected his battle points from the check-in woman, than began to leave.  
  
"Wait," Arieth called to the boy, who turned and waited for her, "Thanks. My name's Arieth, what's yours?"  
  
The boy looked a bit shocked at her name, but replied nonetheless, "Sephiroth."  
  
Now it was Arieth's turn to be surprised. Her parents had told her all about the terrible deeds that the Sephiroth of ol' had done.  
  
"Why would parents name their child that," she thought out loud.  
  
"What's wrong with my name?" Sephiroth replied, causing Arieth to blush profusely realizing what she had said.  
  
"N-nothing, it's a wonderful name. Where were you planning on going?" She replied quickly, trying to make up for her blunder.  
  
Sephiroth paused slightly, then smiled brightly and replied, "I was heading over to the point exchange machine to cash in my points, then I was going to head down to the arcade to hit the snowboard game."  
  
"Mind if I join you?" Arieth asked hopefully, swooning over his gorgeous smile.  
  
"Sure, it's a date," Sephiroth replied after a short pause.  
  
"R-r-really? You mean it?" Arieth stuttered, a bright glimmer in her eyes.  
  
"Yeah, sure. You don't think I'm that thick not to notice every girl in this place staring after me, do you? And since you're the prettiest one that I've seen all day, what the heck. That is, of course, if that's cool with you," The black haired youth replied.  
  
"O-of course," Arieth answered, still trying to get her words straight.  
  
At this point, Cloud came walking up the stairs. He saw his girl standing there with a tall, muscular youth and chuckled to himself. The boy's back was to him as he mounted the final step.  
  
"Hi, Angel. Who's your friend?" Cloud said, walking up to his daughter.  
  
"Oh, hi Daddy. This is Sephiroth. We jus…"  
  
"What's his name?" Cloud interrupted.  
  
"My name's Sephiroth, Cloud. And yes, I am the same Sephiroth from eighteen years ago. But no, I'm not insane anymore. In fact, I even know who my real mother is," Sephiroth replied  
  
"Uh huh," Cloud snorted as he pulled out his Buster Sword, "If you are Sephiroth, then step away from my daughter before I have to hurt you."  
  
Sephiroth stepped back with hands raised, "I'm not going to hurt her. We were just going to go down to the arcade."  
  
"I don't care. Start talking," Cloud demanded of the boy, "How did you survive? Where have you been the last eighteen years? Why are you so much younger than before? And, What were you really going to do to my daughter?"  
  
"Daddy…" Arieth whimpered, never seeing her father like this before, he had Sephiroth at sword point, with both hands on the hilt of his sword, ready to thrust it into the boy."  
  
"Not now, Arieth. Did you know that this is THE Sephiroth?" Cloud barked  
  
"No…" Arieth replied  
  
At this point, Sephiroth leaned against a railing behind him, and folded his arms over his chest.  
  
"Now," Cloud turned back to the buy, "Answer my questions!!"  
  
"Well," Sephiroth started, "I don't think I survived in the sense you think I did. Rather, my spirit entered the Lifestream. Then the planet formed a "womb" for me in which I have been regrowing for the last eighteen years. That's why I'm so young. While I was in the "womb" the planet fed me with information. It told me all about Jenova the ancients my mother, Lucrecia, and finally, it told me that I have to repent for my sins. I can't do wrong, or I will suffer for all eternity. I wasn't going to do anything to your daughter, besides maybe take her out for a soda and some video games."  
  
Both Cloud and Arieth had one silent at Sephiroth's explanation. Cloud had sheathed his sword when he heard Sephiroth speak his actual mother's name. Cloud had met Lucrecia very close to the time that he had beaten Sephiroth.  
  
Now Cloud spoke up, "I can't believe it. You're saying that you know everything you did, but aren't going berserk about it, plus, you have learned much more?"  
  
"That's pretty much it," Sephiroth replied as he stood up and held out his hand, "No hard feelings. Ok, Buddy?"  
  
Cloud took his hand and shook it heartily, "Yeah sure, no hard feelings. I don't know why, but I believe you. We have to go find Tifa and tell her this."  
  
"Ok," Both Sephiroth and Arieth replied. All three walked off to the racing center.  
  
-------------------------------------------------  
  
None of the three had noticed a small, pink chunk of tissue under a bench. The disgusting thing reared up, showing a pair of glowing eyes and small tentacles.  
  
: Sephiroth cannot finish the quest he was truly reincarnated for; it will mean my complete destruction:  
  
As a girl walked by, the thing shot out, climbed up her, and absorbed itself into her neck, all in about a second. The girl's eyes began to glow, and the disposition of her face changed.  
  
"I am Jenova. And Sephiroth will not survive my second coming," The newly reformed evil Centra said to herself, as she walked off to find some followers 


	4. Chapter 3

1 The Planet's Chosen  
  
2 Chapter Three  
  
3  
  
Why did I believe Sephiroth? Something pushed me to my acceptance, but I think I had a part in accepting it, also. Is there something that he actually needs our help with? Cloud pondered to himself over a drink at the bar in the hotel. Sephiroth and Arieth were chatting lightly about their lives and Tifa was taking out her confusion and a bit of rage on an arm wrestling machine in the corner. Cloud sighed as he stirred the ice in his drink. Oh well, I'm sure the answers will present themselves just like they did in my last adventure.  
  
Sephiroth glanced over at the pondering Cloud, "Hey Arieth, What's wrong with Cloud? He's been moping around ever since we returned to the hotel."  
  
Arieth shrugged as she replied nonchalantly, "Oh, he's just thinking. The last time I saw him like that, he was looking at the bill from my latest shopping spree"  
  
The two looked at each other, and then burst out laughing. Sephiroth was still a bit worried about Cloud, the last time he had seen Cloud like that, he was forcing him to stab the original Arieth through the back (remember, he wasn't awake when Cloud gave him the Black Materia). He sipped at his drink, wishing he was older so he could get some booze into his system, but he shrugged it off and continued light conversation with Arieth.  
  
"So, uh… do you have any pets?" He asked sheepishly. For some reason, he had felt very livid around the girl.  
  
"Yeah," she replied with a smile, "I have a Chocobo named Shiva. She's a real sweetheart."  
  
"A Chocobo? What color is it?"  
  
"Oh she's a gol…" She was cut off by a crash near the corner of the bar. The glass window by the wrestling machine had been shattered and three SOLDIER were standing before a ready-to-fight Tifa. The SOLDIER were unarmed and stood slouched over and almost limp.  
  
"What the hell?" Sephiroth murmured before drawing his sword and rushing to fight, along with Cloud. Arieth was staring strangely at the SOLDIER, it seemed to her that there was an odd aura emanating from them in the form of a cloud that churned and became smoky skulls for a brief instant before once again becoming part of the cloud.  
  
"Arieth, come on! What are you waiting for?" Her father called, knowing a fight with SOLDIER would be good for her training. Arieth blinked once, and the cloud above the strange men disappeared.  
  
As she joined them, the SOLDIER, who had been standing there like limb dolls, began to advance.  
  
"Who are you, and what do you want?" Cloud demanded from the odd SOLDIER  
  
"WE WANT TO KILL YOU, CLOUD STRIFE!" The lead man of the three said, he barely whispered it, but it felt like a train whistle next to the ears of the group, "ALONG WITH ALL THOSE WITH YOU!"  
  
"I doubt that," Cloud stated as all four took up combat positions. The SOLDIER jumped upon them, only to be beaten back quickly by the amazingly flexible soldiers. The others tried their luck, except for Sephiroth, who carefully watched the fight.  
  
Tifa noticed him not fighting like the rest of them, and instantly got suspicious. "These are your lackeys, aren't they? That's why you're not fighting them!"  
  
Tifa was about to lunge at Sephiroth, since she couldn't hit the SOLDIER, when Sephiroth dashed at the freakish men and stabbed the lead one through the stomach. He quickly pulled the blade out, tearing a large chunk of flesh out of its side. As he jumped back, the SOLDIER's side re-grew and looked completely normal, besides the large rip in the clothing.  
  
"Just as I thought, They're Numbers." Sephiroth mumbled as he carefully watched the re-growth of the creature's side.  
  
"Numbers?" Tifa questioned him, still wary, but facing the SOLDIERS.  
  
"The clones of myself that earned numbers." Sephiroth responded, "Ok people, listen, the only way to destroy these things is to…"  
  
Sephiroth was interrupted by the in unison snickering of the three clones. The lead being was the first to start talking, "YOU THINK THAT WE ARE SIMPLY THE CLONES OF ONE AS WEAK AS YOU, SEPHIROTH? WE ARE MUCH MORE, WE ARE THE TRUE CHILDREN OF JENOVA! AND NOW, YOU SHALL TASTE OUR TRUE POWER!"  
  
With that, the three SOLDIER fell to the ground and began twitching as if in a coma. Soon, a thick, pink jelly began emitting from them and completely coated their bodies. When they stood up and shook the slime off of themselves, they had completely changed.  
  
"Oh my god…" Aerith stammered as she looked in horror at the three monsters.  
  
  
  
"I wonder what it is that has brought me here." Vincent remarked as he cracked a smile, thinking about all that had happened since he had been to the Golden Saucer last. Since defeating Sephiroth, he had gone off by himself to regain the meaning of life. After all his years of wandering, he had finally come to grips with his death, the death of Lucrecia, and his transformation from a Turk to the warrior he had become. Along with understanding, his original personality had returned to him. He is no longer a gaunt and dark person. Rather, he is easy to make smile and is not a stranger to jokes.  
  
Adjusting his metal arm, he continued to walk through the valley towards North Corel, easily taking out and monsters that he encountered along the way.  
  
  
  
The three creatures advanced on the party. They walked upright and had tattered remains of clothing on their bodies, but and further resemblance to humans was impossible. Their arms had become long, thin appendages, tipped off by large claws, built for ripping and tearing. Sprouting from their sickly gray torsos were large, white tentacles that closely resembled gigantic maggots. Their mouths had become gaping holes, filled with jagged teeth at random intervals.  
  
"These weren't created by any god!" Sephiroth yelled over his shoulder as he lunged at the monsters and took off the lead's head. "Everyone! Go for the heads!"  
  
The body of the first beast simply fell to the floor, turned into a puddle of goo, the slid to the feet of the two other monsters, making them larger.  
  
"Oh, crap," Cloud stated as he, Tifa, Cait-Sith and Aerith jumped into the fray.  
  
The battle quickly heated up and was quickly turning quite gory. Chunks of the soldier-monsters were flying in all directions as they were cut or punched off, and blood from our heroes was dotting the floor as the claws and tentacles of the beasts lashed out in all directions. The beasts fought with all the rage of a pride of cornered lions, and the battle was not faring well for the good guys, each time a limb was severed, it would simply turn to goop, and return to it's owner and form again.  
  
Cloud was able to sever one of the heads of one of the creatures, giving the party a small break as the two fused. "What now, Sephiroth? I say we take of the last head and finish this"  
  
"I don't think so. I'm pretty sure that won't work"  
  
"Why not?" Aerith replied to Sephiroth's grim response.  
  
"Because the only way to kill them is to stab them right through the…HEART!" to accent his last word, Sephiroth dashed forward and drove his sword deep into the beasts chest.  
  
"YOU FELL RIGHT INTO IT, O, GREAT SEPHIROTH!!" the beast commented as Sephiroth tried to remove his sword from the creatures chest, to no avail. "I WILL TAKE YOUR SWORD NOW, AND YOUR LIFE LATER"  
  
With that, the SOLDIER jumped through the roof of the bar and disappeared. Leaving Sephiroth in a dumb silence, on his knees and looking at his hands with eyes wide in disbelief.  
  
"Sep…Sephiroth? Are you alright?" Arieth asked, with no response.  
  
"Come on, Honey, we'll come back for him. We have to find that monster before it causes any more damage." Tifa told her daughter as she and Cloud walked off the door.  
  
"A…alright." She responded. Placing a hand on Sephiroth's shoulder, she whispered, "We'll be back soon"  
  
Sephiroth didn't respond.  
  
  
  
Vincent was walking through the slums of North Corel when a dark shadow flitted across his vision. Drawing his rifle, he began to search the shadows for the odd shape. After a bit of searching, he shrugged and continued walking, keeping his gun out.  
  
When he reached the deck, the lift was just stopping. He waited outside the door after flashing the advanced ticket he had bought at the last town. When the door opened, he was bowled over by Aerith and Cloud, still on their search for the monster that had taken Sephiroth's sword.  
  
"What the hell!?!" he cried out as Cloud's metal shoulder pad knocked hard into his chest, pushing the air out of his body and laying him flat.  
  
"Vincent?" Cloud blurted out as he saw the dark man he had knocked down, "What are you doing here?"  
  
"I have no know idea," Vincent spurted out between coughs and gasps for air, "I was drawn here, for some reason"  
  
Cloud and Aerith helped Vincent onto his feet. Hw quickly brushed himself off and exchanged friendlier greetings with the two.  
  
"You have grown quite a bit since I last saw you Aerith. You have become quite an attractive young lady," He stated, much to the embarrassment and blushing of Aerith.  
  
"Yes she has," Cloud retorted, "And you have changed so… not at all…"  
  
"Well, I am immortal, so it's a bit hard for me to age, ya' know" he quipped, nodding his head deeply after the last two words, "Now tell me, what were you two in such a hurry for? You almost killed me in your stampede."  
  
"Oh my god, the sword!" Aerith cried, "We forgot about it! Dad! We have to find that monster and get Sephiroth's sword back to him"  
  
"Right" Cloud answered as he and Aerith bolted off the platform and dashed into the town.  
  
"I'll come too," Vincent called after the and quickly caught up, only to come to a screeching halt, "Wait … Sephiroth?" 


	5. Chapter 4

1 The Planet's Chosen  
  
1.1 Chapter 4  
  
"This is perfect", Jenova mused to herself as she held the Masamune in her hands, the glittering blade reflecting her face with little distortion, "without this, Sephiroth is helpless, more so than when he was under my power. This is a truly sweet victory for my ultimate domination of this planet. I will rule this miserable planet that was stolen from my people thousands of years ago. Isn't that right, my minions"  
  
From all around the chair she was seated in, thousands of voices in unison all responded from the lightless void surrounding the ring of candles that contained Jenova's throne, "YES, OUR QUEEN"  
  
"Listen Sephiroth, we looked for hours, but your sword is nowhere to be found," Cloud explained to the unresponsive youth, "Now the only way to get it back is if we go on a journey for it, alright?"  
  
No response.  
  
Cloud started to get aggravated, "Look at yourself! Look at you, the great Sephiroth, acting like a little child! Now, snap out of it!"  
  
With that, Cloud punched Sephiroth to the ground, where the black- cloaked swordsman just laid there, wallowing in self-pity.  
  
"Let me try, daddy," Aerith said as she kneeled down and lifted Sephiroth's head onto her lap, "Listen, Sephiroth, that thing said it was a child of Jenova. So that means that Jenova is back, and she has your weapon…"  
  
A faint glimmer showed in Sephiroth's eye.  
  
"…to her disposal. Now think, if she has that powerful weapon, what do you think she can do? Think of the damage she can cause with the Masamune! Now, I believe we can get it back from her, but we will need you, so come on, let's get going!"  
  
At her last words, Sephiroth jumped up, staggered from getting up too quickly, then got a determined look on his face, "You're right Arieth… and Cloud, there is so much she can do with my sword. We need to find her and stop her! But first! I need a weapon. To the armory shop!"  
  
As he began to walk off, Arieth grabbed his arm and pulled him back, "No, Sephiroth, the first thing you need to do is clean your face, your nose is bleeding"  
  
"Oh… right"  
  
Minutes later, the whole party stood in the shopping district of the Golden Saucer, looking at swords for the black haired warrior. Each person offering a different suggestion as to which he should purchase, much to his and the saleswoman's exasperation.  
  
"Here's a nice one, look at all those Materia slots"  
  
"No no, Tifa, you can't just go for materia, you have to look for POWER! Like this one, now THIS is a man's sword!"  
  
"Yes sir, that is a very nice item, very pow…"  
  
"Daddy! He can't walk around with something like that! He needs something more elegant, not to mention stylish. And look at the cute kitty at the end of the hilt!"  
  
"Um… I don't think I want to walk around with THAT thing"  
  
"Of course you do! How much does this cost?"  
  
"Excellent choice. That's a very popular item these days"  
  
"Arieth, he said he didn't want that, now here, Seph, is a weapon! Look, it even has a gun built into it. Cool name too, Gunblade, Lionheart type"  
  
"That's new to our store, just got it in this month, very powerful! Will that be cash or credit?"  
  
"SHUT UP!" as Sephiroth's voice shot through the store and surrounding mall, all noise stopped and everyone in the area looked at the quickly reddening boy. As the populace returned to their business, he began to explain himself, "I'm going up against a being much more powerful than any of us, I need to pick carefully of my weapon. So, why don't you all go shopping for supplies while I choose a weapon?"  
  
The whole group parted, except for Vincent, who stood there, staring at Sephiroth with his odd red eyes, "Cloud and them might have bought that story, but I'm going to need a little more proof."  
  
"I can't blame you, after all the atrocities I've caused, but I plan to prove myself to you all. Now, why don't you go get some bullets for that rifle of yours?"  
  
Vincent patted him on the shoulder as he walked by him to the entrance, "Hurt any of my friends, and I will put you through the same torture I had to suffer"  
  
As Sephiroth sorted through the swords, he became more and more dispirited. Each weapon was a fine blade, but none compared to the power in his original weapon. Almost to the point of giving up, a large black case in the back of the storage room, brought into sight by the saleswoman moving back into the room, pushing a curtain out of her way.  
  
"Excuse me, miss, what's in that black case back there"  
  
"Would you like to see it?" She moved into the stockroom at a nod from him, coming out with the large box under her arm, the long case knocking a few swords to the ground as she set it on the counter, "This item didn't sell at all, it's too… I don't know, gaudy, ugly, powerful, complex, whatever you want, for most people"  
  
"Let me see it," he stated, tapping the box, now genuinely interested with the weapon inside. As the woman opened the case, a faint green glow filtered out. The case fully opened, a long, green sword made of Mako so condensed it was beyond Materia reflected it's soft light off Sephiroth's eyes. The blade looked as if it had just been pulled from a single long geode, its blade was crooked, but not so much as to render it useless.  
  
"Now," the saleswoman began to explain, "the magic system of this sword is a bit complicated. To insert Materia into the sword you must…"  
  
She was lost for words as Sephiroth took the sword out of the case and put a green Materia into a small indent in the side of the sword. Upon contact, the jewel disappeared and one facet of the blade flashed and became a darker green than the rest of the saber.  
  
"How much Materia can this sword hold?" Sephiroth asked coolly, "And how do I go about getting Materia out of it?"  
  
Flustered, the woman stuttered out answers, "I… it can hold eight Materia, only four of which can be coupled. To arrange Materia inside the sword, simply put your finger on the facet of the materia you want to move, and slide it onto another materia facet. To remove Materia, put your finger on the facet of the Materia you want to remove, and then put your hand in the divot that Materia enters through."  
  
Sephiroth listened carefully to her, then nodded and laid the sword back into it's case, "How much for both the sword and this Materia?" he laid four Materia on the counter, two green, one blue, and one yellow.  
  
The woman rang up all his purchases, put the Materia in a pouch, and handed it all to him, "Thank you for shopping the Golden Saucer weapon and magic shop. We hope for your business again!"  
  
Sephiroth smiled back at her as he walked out. When he reached an open area, he pulled his sword out of the box and swung it around a few times, amazed at how well balanced it was, not to mention lightweight. Sliding it into the spot where his old blade went, he made his way for the battle arena, hoping to get in a little more practice before the quest got underway.  
  
When he reached the arena, there was already a crowd circling the observation deck. So, he just signed in on the waiting list and went to one of the monitors to see who was doing so good to get an entire crowd's attention. To his extreme not surprise, it was Tifa in the arena.  
  
"Kicking ass as usual, I see," Sephiroth commented to himself, smiling.  
  
"Man, look at the tits on that girl!" one voice perked up in the crowd  
  
"I know what you mean, I'd love to get a hold on those cans."  
  
A couple boys came out of the crowd and towards the exit, still making profane comments about Tifa and snickering, both of which immensely pissed of Sephiroth. So, he followed them until they were away from the general crowd, then he made his move.  
  
"I'm surprised she could even…grrk" one boy stopped abruptly as Sephiroth's hand gripped his collar and pulled him off the ground, along with the other boy.  
  
"Could what? Fight? Trust me, she can! When I was killing millions of people years ago, she aided in stopping me from destroying the planet with Meteor! Because of her, partially, you both are still alive! Not feeling so up to making comments about her proportions now, are we?" he threw them into a wall, causing the plaster to crack in all directions, "Now, if I ever come across you two again, I will not spare your lives. Got that?"  
  
The two boys got up, groaning slightly, and ran for the exit of the Golden Saucer. Sephiroth, his anger spent, turned back to the arena to sign up for his turn and watch Tifa finish her round. On his way up the stairs, he caught a glimpse of his reflection in a large plate of brass lining the entrance. Besides being a bit distorted, what her saw in the metal sent waves of horror and surprise through him. In the gold tinted metal, the being that stared back at him had several white, glowing markings covering his face, as well as the eyes holding the same glow. Already well on the top landing of the stairs, he took a step back, but nowhere near falling off.  
  
"Wha... What is this?" His voice was turbulent as he came closer to the brass, his finger pressed against on of the markings, trying to see if it rubbed off, "Alright, Seph, calm down... there has to be some explanation for this"  
  
He took a deep breath, gathering his wits about him, turning slightly away from his reflection. When he looked at the mirror again, his normal green eyes, with the shine of mako, glared back at him. The markings were also gone, much to his relief and surprise. A little hesitantly, he moved away from the metal, and moved into the battle arena, shaking his head, and deep in thought.  
  
"I wonder... could I have been hallucinating? Or maybe..."  
  
"Hey, Sephiroth!" His train of thought broken, he looked up to see a happy, but a little sweaty, Tifa walking towards him. Forgetting his problems, he put on a wide smile and walked up to meet her.  
  
"Hello, Tifa, what's up?" he said as his hand dived into his pockets  
  
"Not much." She glanced behind his back, seeing the hilt of a new long sword poking out of the Masamune's scabbard. "Ah, I see you found a new sword for yourself, here to try it out?"  
  
He nodded as he pulled out the long blade, showing her the slightly glowing crystal it was made from. "The lady at the shop called it a Mako Blade. I guess I'm really lucky to find a powerful weapon in a place as commercial as this."  
  
Tifa nodded in agreement, then pointed to the arena. "There's no line for the arena, everyone her has come to watch me! Why don't you go in there and give them a show, I bet I can worm some battle funds out of this," with that, she ran off to take bets that Sephiroth could do as good as she could. A few people glanced at him, and then willingly took her bet, most of them not being around earlier that morning.  
  
Sephiroth smiled as he walked up to the counter and signed in, "Uh, hello, i'd like to take the hardest program you got."  
  
The receptionist looked up at him, a bit surprised, "Are you sure? I mean, you did one of those earlier today, don't you think you should hold back?"  
  
He glared at her.  
  
"Alright, alright, but don't blame me when you get KOed." She typed the program into the computer as Sephiroth went up to the battle arena, slamming the heavy door behind him and preparing himself for combat in the center of the arena  
  
As he slowly drew his sword, the first challenge, a Behemoth, charged out. Bringing his sword up, he quickly countered the beast's charge, his blade locking with its horns. He grit his teeth together as he felt his feet begin to slide over the floor, the beast being physically larger than he, making him easier to push back  
  
Outside, Tifa loudly shouted encouragements to him, not wanting to lose any money. Her worries were put to rest as Sephiroth leaped into the air, leaving the purple demon below him to stagger. Spinning in the air in a tight spiral, he halted his decent with a simple float spell. "Come on, ugly, try and get me up here!"  
  
The beast reared its head back and billowed out a large torrent of flame, easily dodged by the floating swordsman. Holding his hand in one hand, he put his other out to the beast, concentrating on the new green Materia in his sword.  
  
"DEMI!" the arena echoed with his voice as a black orb formed around the beast, distorting it's body with extreme increases and decreases of gravity, causing massive damage. As the spell faded, he dropped to the ground, as did the beast. He approached the weak creature and ran his blade through it, the beast's body disappearing into millions of tiny red crystals, which floated into the air and disappeared. Turning back to the monster gate, He raised his blade along his cheek and waited for the next monster burst through the portal. Faintly, he could her Tifa's cheers as she collected money, and took more bets, even with the soundproof glass surrounding the arena.  
  
A loud boom turned his attention back to the monster gate. To his surprise, the monster coming out of the gate was nothing organic, but Scarlet's giant robot, Proud Clod. Through the glass of the helm, he could see that it was a Golden Saucer employee manning the monstrous contraption.  
  
"Maybe Tifa should lower the bets…"  
  
Making her way slowly through the various fashion stores and clothing boutiques in the shopping district, Aerith wasn't concentrating very hard on the fashionable apparel before her eyes. The main thing on her mind was the strange occurrences of the day and, mostly, Sephiroth. Her mind raced with images of his radiant, green eyes, his calm, friendly face, and the fierce way he handled a long sword.  
  
Shaking her head, she spoke softly to herself, "Oh man... what would my parents think if I told them I think I'm falling love with their greatest enemy? Well, it's not like it matters, I don't think he has any feelings for me..."  
  
"I wouldn't be so sure of that," A smooth, deep voice came from behind her, causing the blond girl to nearly jump out of her skin. Turning quickly, she was greeted by the chest of Vincent until she looked up into the warm red eyes of the ex-Turk. In his normal, right hand, he carried a large bag, filled almost to the breaking point with boxes of shells. Even though the collar of his cape was pulled up over his mouth, as it regularly is, she could tell he was smiling.  
  
"Wow, Vincent, you sacred the crap out of me!" She parked up with her hand over her heart, and then turning a little pissed, "How long have you been there, and how much have you heard?"  
  
"Not long, the only part is Sephiroth not having feelings for you, I do not believe that to be correct. I've watched the way he looks at you, especially when you are not looking at him. It's exactly the way Cloud stares at Tifa now and again." all of this he stated matter-of-factly, adjusting his rifle strapped to his shoulder with his claw arm.  
  
"R...really?"  
  
The dark, friendly man simply nodded. "Well, have fun shopping, I'll see you later." He turned to leave, then stopped and turned back. "Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Happy birthday."  
  
He placed a small, round package into her hands, then turned and walked out of the frilly store, waving over his shoulder as he went out of view.  
  
"Um... thanks" Aerith called after him. Looking down at the small package, she quickly opened it and gasped at its contents. Still partially surrounded by the tissue paper, the White Materia sat in the palm of her hand. Looking around quickly, she put the materia into a bangle she wore around her ankle, then went back to shopping, deciding to wait to interrogate Vincent where he had found her priceless gift.  
  
After checking out, she left the store and stood in the middle of the large hall. "Let's see, mom's probably at the battle arena. I guess I'll visit her then, since I'm done here" As she headed off to the battle arena, she noticed an odd girl staring at her. The girl sported short, blond hair, and was wearing shades that covered her eyes. Smiling darkly, the girl turned and disappeared into the crowd.  
  
"Ok... that was weird... I wonder who that was." Starting on her way again, She soon heard the sounds of sirens as a group of medics ran by her, holding a stretcher and running for the battle arena. Worried about ther mother, Aerith quickly picked up the pace and followed them, hoping it was nothing serious.  
  
1.1.1 End of Chapter 4 


End file.
